The instant disclosure generally concerns water heaters. Specifically, the instant disclosure concerns pre-heating, in-line water heaters.
In-line water heaters (sometimes referred to as on-demand water heaters) are designed to heat a continuous supply of input water only when hot water is demanded by a user. This is in contrast to typical storage tank water heaters which keep, on the average, 30-70 gallons of water heated and ready for use 24 hours a day. Opening a hot water faucet triggers one or more heating units (typically, either electric or gas) to heat the water as it flows through the in-line water heater. The water takes a circuitous path through tubing in the in-line water heater so the heating units of the in-line heater have an opportunity to heat the water sufficiently. With in-line water heaters, there is never a shortage of hot water since there is never a tank to deplete. In addition, since there is no tank to heat continuously, there is a significant energy savings.
A conventional in-line water heater comprises a water input to allow water from the plumbing system to enter the water heater, a water output to distribute hot water for use, and a series of transit channels, or heating chambers, to direct the water through the in-line water heater. In many cases, these heating chambers are arranged in a baffle like arrangement which requires the water to travel an extended distance in the in-line water heater. Although the conventional in-line water heaters are more efficient than the storage tank water heaters, the conventional water heaters are not engineered to be as efficient as the in-line water heater described herein.